Ella’s Nursery – The Rocker & Crib

Ella’s nursery is coming along slowly but surely! A few weeks ago, I shared with you guys the nursery moodboard….the plan….the ideas….the vibes. But honestly – that didn’t exist when I start making purchases for her room. It didn’t direct anything – it was more of a reflection of everything already present. That’s right. I did the whole thing backwards. You see, most of the time, you should come up with a plan first….get your inspiration….pick some textiles….plan your paints and storage and the decor that you love. I explain that method more in detail here.

But for Ella’s nursery I was winging it.

Just call me Maverick. I have a need….a need for….um…not planning.

So what exactly did happen with my rebellious nature and the guest room? Well, first we just emptied it all out. Most of it was given to family members or donated to our favorite local charity. I kept a couple items (like my grandmother’s red chair) but it became a clean dark gray slate. Here are some of the pictures that I snapped with my phone right before we started the dissembling of the room…

Fare the well old guest room items! Thank you for taking care of our guests!

Hello clean slate of a future nursery! This little one is ready for you!

The first thing I did was find a rocker. It was love at first sight. I ordered it. It came. We assembled it. Flipped it over expecting to do this grand reveal of a perfect chair only to discover that under the protective wrap, the arm of the chair had a darker worn spot. I was kinda irritated (this was before Christmas and I knew that disassembling it was gonna be a pain and shipping it back was gonna be even a bigger one). BUT I also am that person. The one that just wants what I want. The one that has a picture in my head and if the item isn’t exactly what I thought it should be….will be irrationally angry about seeing it every single day until it’s fixed. So we decided it was better to deal with the return people.

It wasn’t that hard actually….this is from Target and surprisingly it was very easy to return. Bullet dodged.

The new chair came (worn spot was nowhere to be seen)…I loved it and that was the first thing in the room.

Along with a pack-n-play so that little miss could be transitioning to her new space. A lot of times people ask us how we do transitions….we start the new babies in our room usually in a bassinet. This is our favorite one. And over time we do more co-sleeping. Then when the child can crawl, we transition to a pack-n-play in our room. Then when it is time to go to their own room, we transition the entire pack-n-play to that new space. This gives the child a consistent item and may make zero difference in making it easier but in our minds it makes sense. Then once they are good in the new space, we eventually put them in their crib.

Speaking of crib….we also had to buy a new one of those as well. We kept waiting for LJ to decide he was over his crib. BUT he kept saying he liked his crib (I think it is because he uses it as a trampoline)….so I took that as a sign that I should be patient with his little cutie self and we should just get a metal crib (never had one of those before!) for my sweet baby girl.

I found this one on Wayfair and the reviews and the price all seemed like it was a perfect fit for our little one.

So are you ready to see the crib and the rocker as they look with good lighting? I tucked the rocker in this corner with a lucite and brass lamp and created the sweetest little reading nook.

The art is from Hobby Lobby and the round circle mirror things are a decade old (they used to be in our old house living room!) – I think I got them from TJMaxx.

The little ceramic stool is such a helpful addition (it’s perfect for books each night!) and then the footstool was a Goodwill find that I gave a makeover. The pillow is from Amazon. Here is the link. Doesn’t it look so cute with the rocker? I love how the linen fabric adds tons of texture to the room and brightens things up.

The bookshelf has a ton of little things – all collected items from random spots. The boys had tons of books so it has been a joy to revisit those and add to Ella’s collection!

So my official review of the chair is this….it’s gorgeous….completely photo worthy and I am happy that I can take off the rocker legs one day and retrofit different feet to the chair. That is the reason I picked it – because I knew that I could do that and still use this piece for many years to come. The comfort level is on par with a dining chair. It’s not super plush or like dad’s recliner. I wouldn’t say that I could nap in it comfortably. But I am VERY happy with a firm chair because my tailbone has issues (five babies later) and plush is not my friend. I would say that it is definitely more nursing friendly with a footstool. And pairing it with a stool and a pillow makes it somewhere that I wouldn’t mind to nurse every single time.

The crib is a great buy. Assembly was very simple and the size of it is great – not too small or too big.

The white is not too blue and not too warm – it feels like it can go with the brightest of whites without looking dirty and still play nice with warmer creams as well.

The design of it is really pretty. I like that the ends are open so that no matter where I mount the monitor, I can see her.

And as far as design goes, I love the simple details (those little tiny arches! the balls that add a polka dot look!). I also am now a big fan of the metal material as a crib. We had a dark sleigh style wood bed for Will, the simplest darker wood style crib in existence for Weston, and white modern wood cribs for LJ & Max so this vintage inspired metal bed is a welcome change!

Also I ordered this bumper and quilt for her (yes, our kids use their crib quilts and blankets and pillows….but they are toddlers so keep that in mind…we do not recommend them for newborns!!!) and I love the simple look. Also if you peek into the crib there is a knit blanket that was mine as a baby so having the new items match it perfectly felt like it was destiny!

Last but not least is the lamp. I wanted to make sure you guys got a close up look at this beauty. This is from Target of all places! Here is the link. I was shocked at the quality of the lamp and the look….it really is just beautiful in person and such a good price. Overall I can not recommend it enough.

Oh and I wanted to mention….we still are on the fence about this accent wall. We love the wall…but it creates a situation with hanging items. Already I am limited in the items that I can hang over the crib…because you always want to err on the cautious side of things that might interest the child and get touched. But then the grid makes it feel off if things aren’t centered in particular places…so I am still trying to brainstorm things that would work.

The other option is to cover the entire thing with temporary shiplap. Like it would be tacked in and held in place with trim so it wouldn’t move and if we wanted to take it down in the future, we could with minor fixes to this underlying accent wall.

The jury is still out. I am not rushed to make a decision on it either way. Just wanted to let you know where my brain is leaning. Because brains do that. They lean.

So that is the progress of phase one – next is the rugs and the dresser! I can’t wait to share those with you! THEY ARE MY FAVORITE. Like the crib and the chair are supporting roles and the dresser and the rugs are the STARS of the show. They are Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper if you will.